Gold miner B2Gold has stepped up its hunt for gold at its recently discovered Antelope deposit at the Otjikoto mine, drilling over 36 000 meters into the Springbok Zone to date, with 33 holes totalling 16,950 meters completed in 2024, to establish the 50 x 50 meter spacing that informs this initial inferred mineral resource estimate.
On January 31, 2024, the company announced positive exploration drilling results from the Antelope deposit at the Otjikoto Mine. The Antelope deposit, which comprises the Springbok Zone, the Oryx Zone, and a possible third structure, Impala, subject to further confirmatory drilling, is located approximately three km south of the Otjikoto open pit.
On June 20, 2024, the company announced an initial inferred mineral resource estimate for the Springbok Zone, the southernmost shoot of the recently discovered Antelope deposit.
“Recent drilling at the Springbok Zone remains open southward, indicating additional exploration potential beyond the currently defined resource. The company determined that the initial inferred mineral resource estimate of 1.75 million metric tonnes grading 6.91 g/t gold for a total of 390,000 ounces of gold was sufficient to initiate a PEA on the development of the deposit by underground mining methods, similar to the Wolfshag deposit. Subject to receipt of a positive PEA and permit, mining of the Springbok Zone, coupled with the exploration potential of the greater Antelope deposit, could begin to contribute to gold production at Otjikoto in 2026,” said the miner.
The Antelope deposit has the potential to be developed as an underground mining operation, which could complement the expected processing of low-grade stockpiles at the Otjikoto mill from 2026 to 2031.
“Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. There is no guarantee that all or any part of the mineral resource will be converted into a mineral reserve. Inferred Mineral Resources are considered too geologically speculative to have mining and economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorised as Mineral Reserves.”
On the other hand, the Otjikoto Mine, in which the company holds a 90% interest, continued to outperform during the second quarter of 2024, producing 48,143 ounces of gold, above expectations as a result of a higher than anticipated mill feed grade. For the second quarter of 2024, mill feed grade was 1.79 g/t, mill throughput was 0.85 million t, and gold recovery averaged 98.6%.
Ore production from the Wolfshag underground mine for the second quarter of 2024 averaged over 1,500 metric tonnes per day at an average grade of 4.69 g/t gold. As of the beginning of 2024, the probable mineral reserve estimate for the Wolfshag deposit included 100,000 ounces of gold in 0.6 million metric tonnes of ore at an average grade of 5.02 g/t gold. Open pit mining operations at the Otjikoto Mine will continue to ramp down in 2024 and conclude in 2025, while processing operations are expected to continue until economically viable stockpiles are exhausted in 2031. Underground operations are currently projected to continue until 2026, with the potential to extend underground operations if the ongoing underground exploration program is successful in identifying more underground mineral deposits.
All-in sustaining costs for the second quarter of 2024 were US$1,044 per gold ounce sold. All-in sustaining costs for the second quarter of 2024 were slightly higher than expected as a result of higher than expected cash operating costs and higher gold royalties due to a higher than anticipated average realised gold price, partially offset by lower than expected sustaining capital expenditures and higher than anticipated gold ounces sold.
Capital expenditures for the second quarter of 2024 totalled US$12 million, consisting of US$9 million for deferred stripping in the Otjikoto pit, US$2 million for Wolfshag underground mine development, and US$1 million for mining equipment rebuilds.
The Otjikoto Mine is now expected to produce between 185,000 and 205,000 ounces of gold in 2024 (original guidance of between 180,000 and 200,000 ounces) at cash operating costs in the upper end of its guidance range of between US$685 and US$745 per ounce and all-in sustaining costs of between US$960 and US$1,020 per ounce. Gold production at Otjikoto is expected to be relatively consistent throughout 2024. For 2024, Otjikoto is expected to process a total of 3.4 million metric tonnes of ore at an average grade of 1.77 g/t gold with a process gold recovery of 98.0%. Processed ore will be sourced from the Otjikoto pit and the Wolfshag underground mine, supplemented by existing medium- and high-grade ore stockpiles.
B2Gold is a low-cost international senior gold producer headquartered in Vancouver, Canada. Founded in 2007, today B2Gold has operating gold mines in Mali, Namibia, and the Philippines; the Goose Project is under construction in northern Canada; and numerous development and exploration projects in various countries, including Mali, Colombia, and Finland. B2Gold forecasts total consolidated gold production of between 800,000 and 870,000 ounces in 2024.